- By Kamakshi Bishnoi
- Mon, 14 Sep 2026 01:27 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
- Indore Crime Branch busts major interstate cyber fraud network.
- Accused Lalit Sutar arrested; over Rs 3 crore laundered.
- Police seized 21 passbooks, 20 chequebooks, 8 ATM cards.
The Crime Branch in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, has busted an interstate cyber fraud network under its special operation, Operation Matrix, and arrested Lalit, alias Rishi Sutar.
The investigation has revealed the extensive scale of the alleged fraud. During the arrest, police recovered several documents and electronic equipment suspected to have been used in carrying out fraudulent transactions and laundering money.
During a search, police seized 21 bank passbooks, 20 cheque books, eight ATM cards, seven QR codes and an HP laptop from Lalit. According to the police, these accounts and devices were being used to defraud people and route fraudulent funds on a large scale.
According to Additional DCP Rajesh Dandotiya, police checked the recovered bank accounts on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal and found that they had been used to launder more than Rs 3 crore in alleged fraudulent funds.
The network had links across 11 states, including Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Punjab, Gujarat, Bihar, West Bengal, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
The investigation also found that 46 separate complaints had already been filed against the bank accounts. Preliminary findings suggest that the network was involved in APK fraud, investment fraud and other forms of online financial fraud.
Meanwhile, police have also taken action against people allegedly involved in providing mule accounts. A mule account is a bank account opened or rented for the purpose of receiving and transferring money obtained through fraud.
Vijayanagar police have registered an FIR against five people, including Arbaaz Khan, Anas Ahmed, Nadeem Khan and Salman Multani, and detained them. According to the police, the accused allegedly lured people with Rs 4 lakh to open a current account in the name of A2Z Car & Deal. They were allegedly promised Rs 20,000 upfront, while the remaining Rs 3.80 lakh was to be paid later.
A similar case has also been reported from the Kanada area, where an FIR has been registered against Vivek Goyal and Arun Sahu. Police said Vivek allegedly lured Arun with money and got him to open a bank account in his name. The account was then allegedly used to transfer money from fraudulent transactions to other states.
Police have registered cases under relevant cybercrime sections in all these cases and are continuing their search for other suspects linked to the interstate network.